Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt has returned to his Pittsburgh Steelers connections to hire Ray Horton as defensive coordinator.

Horton has coached in the NFL for 17 seasons and has been with the Steelers for seven years, the last four as defensive backs coach.

Horton, who played in the NFL for 10 seasons, becomes the Cardinals' third defensive coordinator in Whisenhunt's four years in Arizona. He replaces Bill Davis, who was fired after two seasons on the job.

Whisenhunt was the Steelers offensive coordinator when he was hired as Arizona head coach in 2007. ...

• Packers coach Mike McCarthy had one final chance Wednesday to go over the team's injury report, providing a fitting end to Green Bay's championship season.

CB Charles Woodson (broken collarbone) won't need surgery, WR Jordy Nelson (left knee) played through his injury, ILB A.J. Hawk (wrist) needs an arthroscopic procedure and WR Donald Driver (ankle) would be out if Green Bay had to play another game. Add those to the 16 other Packers on I.R., and McCarthy says his next team certainly will be more talented coming into training camp. That doesn't mean Green Bay's title defense will be any easier.

"The most important thing is we need to be the best football team next year. We can be maybe the most talented and best football team. But sometimes the most talented team doesn't win," McCarthy said. "We have to make sure we're the best football team, that everybody's doing their role, doing what they're supposed to be doing at the level they're supposed to be doing it.

"Because that was a great experience to watch this group of men pull together and fight through the adversity that they needed to, and play their best football when it counted." ...

• The Browns terminated the contracts of six players Wednesday, including former Pro Bowl NT Shaun Rogers. Rogers, who turns 32 this year and is coming off an injury-filled year, was scheduled to earn $5.5 million in 2011. The team also released LBs Eric Barton and David Bowens, DE Kenyon Coleman, TE Robert Royal and OT John St. Clair. ...

• Lions QB Matthew Stafford, who underwent surgery on his throwing shoulder Jan. 21, should be 100 percent long before the team opens training camp in late July. That could be the boost the team needs, having won its last four games to finish 6-10.

"Matthew's doing great," Lions coach Jim Schwartz told FOX Sports. "It'll set him back in the short term. Once we get into training camp ... he'll be 100 percent."

Having finished the season strong and having played three of the final four teams (Jets, Bears and Packers) tough and even splitting the season series with the Packers, Schwartz says he's confident about the future. And so are Lions fans.

"I can't walk around this town without people being enthusiastic," Schwartz said. "It's been a long time since we've been a consistent winner." ...

• Steelers RT Flozell Adams, who turns 36 in May, isn't sure what the future holds for him. He is scheduled to earn $5 million next year, but that's a high number for a backup, his role if starters Max Starks and Willie Colon return to good health.

“This game just finished so we will worry about next year when the time comes,” Adams told The Beaver County Times. “Playing all the seasons I have, you have to keep perspective on things. Even though we lost (in the Super Bowl), it was still a great season. Unfortunately we lost, but we made it here. We tried to do the best we could, but we didn’t get the win.” ...

• The Rams told FB Mike Karney this week that they will release him, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, because new coordinator Josh McDaniels rarely uses a fullback. Karney, 29, had one more year left on his contract, at $1.1 million.

"That's the business," Karney told the Post-Dispatch. "It's tough for me in my position, but I'm not going to kick or scream or yell. What can you do? You've just got to take the experiences and what you've learned from 'em and move on." ...

• Chiefs officials say there is a 50-50 chance that C Casey Wiegmann, who turns 38 in July, will retire this offseason, according to ESPN. If G.M. Scott Pioli decides to fill the job from within, Rudy Niswanger would be the top candidate. However, the team also could add a center during April’s draft. ...

• The Falcons released S Erik Coleman on Wednesday and re-signed pending free agent LB Coy Wire. Coleman, 28, started in 2008 and 2009 but lost his job last season. The team chose to cut him rather than pay his $3 million salary for 2011. Wire, a special teams star, signed a two-year contract. ...

• The Jets signed K Nick Novak, who led the UFL in scoring last season, on Wednesday. Incumbent K Nick Folk is a pending free agent, and he was a candidate to be replaced anyhow after struggling down the stretch. Folk hit 30-of-39 field-goal attempts in 2010 with a long of 56 yards, but he did hit the game winner vs. Indianapolis in the playoffs. Novak does have NFL experience, kicking for the Redskins, Cardinals and Chiefs from 2005-08. ...

• The Colts hired David Walker as the new running backs coach Wednesday. He coached the running backs at the University of Pittsburgh from 2005-10 and recently had been hired as Maryland's running backs coach.